I can’t believe that I’m already 22 weeks pregnant! Once those rough, first 12 weeks passed, it feels like the weeks have been flying by. There has been so many changes to my body though- it has been weird but so cool to experience.
Baby
Size of an ear of corn. Measuring 3 days bigger than my due date. Moving like crazy- Matt felt him move too.
My Weight
I’ve been concerned about my weight- that I haven’t been gaining enough. Like my doctor said, every woman’s body is different. I’ve gained 6 pounds so far but at night it’s usually 8 pounds. My stomach is getting larger by the day though and I’m starting to feel/look pregnant. My feet and legs are starting to swell more too.
Our latest appointment
Two weeks ago, at our 20 weeks appointment, Matt and I found out the gender…a boy! This was also the appointment where they did a full anatomy scan. Everyone (besides the parents of the baby) are usually focused on the gender but we just wanted to make sure his heart, head and spin were ok. Everything like that came back normal, his growth was good. One thing they did discover is that I have a “marginal cord insertion”. This means that the umbilical cord is placed on the edge of the placenta instead of the middle where it normally is. My doctor told me this was nothing to worry about and it will just require two additional ultrasounds for monitoring. They will be monitoring his growth to make sure he is growing how he should be. If he isn’t growing at the rate he should, they will deliver him at 36 weeks. My doctor also told me not to “Google it” but of course I did. Bad idea!
My Symptoms
Thankfully, the last 6 weeks my symptoms have been good. The days of being nauseous all day are gone! So all the other symptoms feel small compared to those first 12 weeks.
- There are times throughout the day where I feel a little nauseous but I’ve found that ice tea helps with that.
- Baby moves…a lot! Especially when I lay on my back. If I’m on my back for longer than 5 minutes, he wakes up and moves around like crazy.
- I have to pee A LOT. It is even more than the first trimester which I didn’t think would happen until later on.
- I get really tired now if it’s been a long day/days. If too many days in row are super busy, I crash. I allow myself to just rest and listen to my body.
- Although I do get tired- my energy level is close to normal. This has been nice to feel like myself again.
- Anytime I get stressed out lately my face breaks out in this bright red rash on my cheeks. It looks like rosacea but I’m not sure if it is or not. Matt can always tell when I’m stressed or my body is stressed because it’s immediate. I’ve been working on that.
- My belly is starting to itch more. No stretch marks though.
- I’m sleeping about 7-8 hours a day and that seems to be enough.
- I have to sleep with a pregnancy pillow now. My hips and my stomach start to hurt if the pillow isn’t used as support.
- I’ve had a couple times where I feel super PMS’y but that is brought on by tiredness.
- My feet and legs look swollen more often than not.
Food Cravings/Aversions
My food cravings and aversions have been very strong. If I don’t want it, I absolutely cannot eat it. If I do want it, I’ll do anything I can to get it. Dairy/cheese has been a huge craving. For a year and a half before pregnancy, I was vegan. When week 7 came, I started to crave cheese and dairy like crazy. I listened to my body and just ate it. Now, I have to eat it everyday. I’m still vegetarian though and haven’t craved meat at all…thank goodness! Ranch dressing from a specific restaurant is my newest obsession. Ice cream everyday is another. I usually don’t like ice cream but for some reason ice cream is a must. Lately, I’ve been obsessed with strawberry shortcake- that’s my newest craving.
What I Miss
I miss sleeping on stomach! Some nights I’ll wake up where I’m leaning on my stomach too much and it hurts. The pregnancy pillow has been my savior. The extra support from the pillow has helped tremendously with my comfort level. I miss having a cocktail too. I LOVE having a cocktail, on the patio, during the summertime. Mocktails (cocktails without alcohol) have helped with that though. My friend just made me a really good Mojito Mocktail and it was delicious! I’m craving that now.
Preparing for Baby
We are somewhat registered and our baby shower invites are going out soon. I started to feel really guilty a couple weeks ago because we haven’t been focusing on preparing for the baby…at all! We’ve been super busy lately but now I feel like we have made some progress. I’ve bought some outfits, we’ve half way registered but that’s about it. We’ll get everything done but it will probably be after the baby shower.
I’m so happy that the last 6 weeks have been pretty great! I’m enjoying this part of pregnancy a lot. Feeling him move has been my favorite part and has been so surreal.
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